Dead Island
Survive a zombie-infested island with melee combat and role-playing elements.
Dead Island is a 2011 action role-playing game developed by Techland and published by Deep Silver. It was released for Linux, Microsoft Windows, OS X, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game is centered on surviving a zombie-infested open world with an emphasis on melee combat. Its cinematic announcement trailer, shown in 2006, generated controversy for depicting a dead child but was widely praised for its emotional impact, animation, and story, and is considered one of the best trailers in any medium.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Dead Island
- Developer
- Techland
- Publisher
- Deep Silver
- Director
- Paweł Marchewka
- Producer
- Adrian Ciszewski
- Artist
- Paweł Selinger · Szymon Urban
- Writer
- Paweł Selinger · Haris Orkin · Michał Madej
- Composer
- Paweł Błaszczak
- Engine
- Chrome Engine 5
- Platforms
- Microsoft Windows · PlayStation 3 · Xbox 360 · OS X · Linux · PlayStation 4 · Xbox One
- Released
- Windows, PS3, Xbox 360NA · 6 September 2011 · WW · 9 September 2011OS XWW · 28 April 2014LinuxWW · 24 October 2014PlayStation 4, Xbox OneWW · 31 May 2016
- Genre
- Action role-playing, survival horror
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Dead Island was announced at the 2006 Electronic Entertainment Expo but was delayed until 2011. The game's cinematic announcement trailer was met with controversy over its depiction of a dead child, yet reception was nonetheless positive, with praise for its emotional impact, animation, and story. Despite pre-release acclaim, the game received generally lukewarm reviews. It was praised for its atmosphere, gameplay, and playable characters, but criticized for large technical difficulties, in-game glitches, graphics, and most notably for lacking the emotional themes presented in the trailer. The game sold over 5 million units by February 2013.
Reader's Guide
Dead Island is notable for its open-world first-person perspective and experience-based gameplay, where players earn XP by completing tasks and killing enemies. Combat emphasizes melee weapons, with firearms unavailable for the first half of the game. Weapons are randomly generated, can be upgraded three times, and can be modded using blueprints to add special features. A stamina bar limits physical actions, and special class zombies add challenge. The plot follows four playable survivors—Sam B., Xian Mei, Logan Carter, and Purna Jackson—who are immune to a virus that turns people into flesh-eating creatures. They attempt to escape the island of Banoi, encountering Colonel Ryder White, who initially promises a cure but ultimately betrays them. A separate Ryder White campaign details events two weeks prior to the outbreak. The game's legacy includes a standalone DLC expansion, Dead Island: Riptide (2013), a spin-off Escape Dead Island (2014), and a sequel Dead Island 2 delayed until 2023. A remastered version, Dead Island Definitive Edition, was released in 2016.
Did You Know?
- The game's cinematic announcement trailer was controversial for depicting a dead child but was widely praised as one of the best trailers in any medium.
- Melee weapons are emphasized to the point that firearms are not available for the first half of the game.
- The infection is a mutation of Kuru that originated from the indigenous population of Banoi.
- A remastered version, Dead Island Definitive Edition, was released in 2016 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
More in Role-Playing Games of the 2010s, Part 1 1-24
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